Safumi's second chance [Side Story 5 End]

As the board vanished, Michiko let out a scream before her consciousness was transferred back to her original body. Once Safumi's consciousness had returned, she immediately vomited. It was natural given she was just in Michiko's body and had been exposed to all the pain and trauma Raymond had subjected it to.

"Are you alright?" Okisato asked.

"Huh? I look alright to you? I was in fucking hell. Pain, pain, AHhh!" Safumi cried as she clutched her head.

"But do you feel any pain now?"

"Heh?"

Safumi paused as she noticed she was able to move around again. "Oi, the hell's going on!?"

Okisato quickly explained everything as Himitsudono and the nurse emerged from the bushes.

"So now I'm some freak who can't feel pain? Great. My body's still messed up, and now I won't even be able to tell."

"At least you'll be able to move around again."

Safumi went silent before shaking her head and heading back towards the building. It was later revealed during a check-up that while Safumi's nerves were still damaged, she'd now be able to move much like she did before, though was advised not to overdue her movements. She was then allowed to be dismissed, but Okisato persuaded her to at least seal her DESPER first.

"No, why would I?"

"What if doing so could get you a high horse powered wheelchair?"

Safumi thought for a moment before sighing and complying. "Damn brat. Better not be lying."

"I'm not, and aren't you only two years older than me? Kind of odd to be calling me-"

"Shut up!"

Once Safumi's DESPER was sealed, she was granted a custom scooter. It couldn't go as fast as a motorcycle, but it was still faster than the average motorized wheelchair by leaps and bounds.

"So now that you're healed up, want to participate in the qualifiers for the women's national team?" Okisato asked.

"Huh!? Was that why you did all this!?"

"No, I simply thought I'd mention it since starts in a few hours."

"I'm an SPCM. I can't-"

"Did you not hear about the policy changes?"

Safumi let out a sigh and asked where the tournament was being held. After learning it was being held at Ryokoma in Tokyo, and that there was a secret puzzle cafe there, Safumi warped away in a millisecond. She did end up participating in the tournament, but ended up not making the team as she suffered two notable losses to both Tenju and Cinnamon.

...

As soon as the results for the tournament were announced, Safumi let out a sigh as she wheeled in to the secret puzzle cafe in Tokyo.

"Ugh, you're all here. Just great."

"I'm glad to see you back on your feet, Himitsusan," Daria smiled.

"Yeah, yeah. Well at least you picked a good place to set up a new secret puzzle cafe. Food's damn good here."

"This also means there's only one SPCM left to track down. Himitsukun, right?" Okisato asked.

Daria scowled as she hid her face with her fan, explaining that there were still many mysteries surrounding that incident. At the very least though, Safumi and Tenju had now sealed their DESPERs and despite their wounds, were back to managing their secret puzzle cafes at full capacity.

...

The next night, all the Japanese SPCMs and Maestro Himitsu gathered at the secret puzzle cafe in Tokyo for a meeting. Safumi had elected to dye her hair and grow it out into a mohawk, while Tenju now looked just as she did before her skin was burnt off. While the two looked fine on the outside, the injuries they received from the Michiko incident remained under the surface.

"So you're repping the national team?" Safumi grumbled.

"Yes. I want to raise my elo and become a grandmaster. For Taira..."

"And that face is latex huh... Surprised ya didn't ask em to enlarge your tits."

Tenju cracked her knuckles as Daria quickly defused the situation.

"I'm glad to see you both bantering like usual. Now with you two back along with the additions of Himitsubo and Himitsunokimi, we're now operating at nearly full capacity. It pains me that Mizuse and Taira are no longer with us, but we must do our utmost to honor their legacies.

"So what about Doraaki?" Tenju asked.

Safumi clicked her tongue, causing Tenju to begin chiding her. Curious as to what was going on. Carol spoke up and quickly learned that Safumi had a vendetta against Doraaki, aka Himitsukun, because she had bigger breasts than her.

"Wait, how big are your tits!?"

"Bigger than yours."

"Let's check!" Carol grinned as she began taking her bra-top off.

"Hmm, seems the meeting will be going off-rails for a bit," Daria smiled as she covered Himitsudono and Rodeo's eyes with her hands.

After confirming that her breasts were in fact bigger, Safumi proudly basked in the glory as Carol fell to her knees in defeat. Once the two were fully clothed again, the meeting resumed.

It turned out Daria had a good idea of where Doraaki was and was confident she'd be able to bring her back. Thus, the topic at hand was focusing on the one remaining open SPCM spot needed to be filled; the one in Okinawa.

"Thanks to this new policy, you'll all be able to improve your skills rather than remain stagnant. This also means you can challenge other SPCMs and maestros, but in the case of the latter, only after you've satisfied the proper requirements to challenge them. I bring this up since many SPCMs and DSPCMs will be participating in the Chess Olympics, so naturally sparks will fly. Since Tenju's managed to gain Taira's intellect, it's likely she'll become a grandmaster soon, especially after the Chess Olympics. This means that her and Safumi will be our two grandmasters. I was previously making it a requirement that one of the new SPCMs be a grandmaster, but if Taira gets the title, I'll be able to be more lenient on who I select. So any nominations for folks to manage the secret puzzle cafe in Okinawa?"

Since no one had anyone in mind, the meeting moved on to other topics before concluding.

"Really feels like we've been given a second chance," Sadumi yawned as she sprawled down on one of the couches.

"For once I agree with you," Tenju grumbled as she sat down across from her.

Safumi shifted her eyes before letting out a sigh and apologizing to Tenju for all that she did while brainwashed. Tenju also apologized for being tricked by Michiko and aiding along with her plan rather than thinking of better ways to save everyone.

"Hey, did you see the state that bitch was in?" Safumi asked.

"No, I have yet to see her, though I'm not sure I ever want to again. Why do you bring this up?"

Safumi explained how her consciousness had been temporarily imprisoned in Michiko's body. Tenju was horrified, but kept her cool and decided to reveal more about what happened with her once she was released from the WWCF medical facility.

"So that Ultima-machine's capable of shit like that!? And I was willing to use it's weapon so selfishly..."

"I did, you didn't. You can at least hold that moral victory over me."

"Not good enough. How about a proper match between us."

"I heard you lost to a toddler that I so happened to beat."

"Hey, that kid's good. I hear her younger sister's also en-route to become a grandmaster before her 1st birthday."

"Excuses. Now let's begin."

"Perfect. Now that we got the go ahead to challenge the maestros, time for me to become the first SPCM to beat 'em all."

[Side Story 5 End]